MSI P45 Platinum Review

Introduction:

Now that the latest motherboards featuring the Intel P45 chipset have been released, the questions on which one performs best have started. For some, the feature set will ultimately make the final determination on which one to purchase. Others will base their purchases on price regardless of performance or feature set. Then there is the enthusiast, for whom the only thing that matters is performance and the ability to reach insane clock speeds on the processor and memory. Some boards have it and some don’t. “It” is the ability to reach the maximum speeds that your hardware is capable of, CPU or system memory.

Using the Intel P45 northbridge chipset and the Intel ICH10R southbridge, the MSI P45 Platinum is one of these latest releases and is part of MSI’s Gaming Series of motherboards. Support is available for the latest Core 2 Duo. Quad core and Extreme 45nm CPUs, 16 gigabytes of system memory running at speeds of 1200 (OC)/1066/800. Supporting the latest enthusiast grade hardware, does the MSI P45 Platinum have “It?”

Closer Look:

Any of you who have used the RyderMark benchmark might recognize the character on the front panel of the box. If it's not the character it looks darn close. The front panel shows the 45nm compatability, Certification for Windows Vista and the DrMos features. The rear panel expands on the DrMos features, Green Power, Express Cool and Rapid Boost.

Opening the box to this Gaming Series motherboard from MSI we have the bundle of accessories as the first visible items. The quick start guide is on top followed by the drive cables and the rest of the accessories. Last, but not least, is the P45 Platinum board itself.